Thrown out for being gay

He walks from one place to another begging for accommodation for at least a night or a week if lucky. He carries with him his few clothes in a torn bag and changes clothes in bathrooms.

Pule*, aged 16, was chased from his home in Jwaneng by his stepfather last year after he told him he was gay as he forced him to come clean about his sexual orientation which he had been curious about since he first saw the boy more than two years ago.  The stepfather met Pule when Pule's mother invited him to dinner to meet her children after dating him for six months. 

His real father passed away. Although he lived with his stepfather they barely had a conversation and had no connection at all, he claims. Pule even overheard his step father complaining to his mother on several occasions that he did not understand him, and claiming that he was not  well disciplined.  "This boy is very spoiled and needs to be guided.  He needs to stop being weird and start behaving like a man.  Otherwise I cannot have him around my children!" his father said to his mother in the kitchen. 

Editor's Comment
Gov’t must rectify recognition of Khama as Kgosi

While it is widely acknowledged that Khama holds the title of Kgosi, the government’s failure to properly gazette his recognition has raised serious concerns about adherence to legal procedures and the credibility of traditional leadership. (See a story elsewhere in this newspaper.) Recent court documents by the Minister for Local Government and Rural Development, Kgotla Autlwetse, shed light on the intricacies of Khama’s recognition process....

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